Google local - is 7 pack really gone
-
According to a searchengineland post, Google has replaced "7 pack" results. But they are still appearing for local queries. Like for query "pizza restaurant new delhi" ( in Google.co.in ), i can still see 7 pack results.
Has local and general search algorithms merged ?
-
Once again, a very detailed explanation. Thanks Ryan.
-
In the past the 7-pack results displayed in addition to the organic results. If you perform a "NY Pizza" search in Google you can still see the 7-pack at the top along with the 10 organic results.
Now the Places results appear mixed in with the organic results. Since the majority of users never make it past the first page of search results, they will never see any organic listings.
When I perform a search for "Sacramento Pizza" there are 12 results on the first page. The first 7 results are the old 7-pack results listed in a similar format to organic results. The next 4 results are all review sites like Yelp, Yellopages.com, etc. There is only a single remaining result on the first page for Rico's pizza.
Before there would have been many organic listings on the first page of SERPs. Now there is only one. That's a game changer.
-
Thanks Ryan for responding to my query.
"it is now even more important to obtain a Google Places listing."
Why is it more imp. now ? Please clarify ?
-
As Rand had previously suggested, a Google's Places listing sends a signal to Google and others that your business is real. It is another link which has to be earned. There is work required to obtain a Google Places listing and there are minimum requirements as well.
Based on the above my answer is yes, it is my opinion that a Google Places listing would have a positive effect on organic rankings. I don't have any evidence to this effect, but I believe strongly enough in it that I work to obtain Google Places listings for clients that don't have a local physical location. If you wanted to sell vitamins online but did not have a local store I would advise you to still create a Places listing because of the impact on organic rankings. It certainly can't hurt.
With the Places change that you mentioned in your original Q&A, it is now even more important to obtain a Google Places listing.
-
Thanks Ryan. What is your opinion on my other question, which i asked yesterday
"Does listing in Google places improve organic rankings".
I got the reply yesterday, but i thought you should be able to throw some light on this.
-
Thank you. That is an exceptionally well written article and I am sure the moz community will appreciate your sharing it.
From what I can tell, the change has not been fully implemented yet.
Query 1 - "Sacramento Pizza". The results appear in the new Place Search format.
Query 2 - "London Pizza". The results appear in the old 7-pack format.
So I theorized that like with many changes, it was rolled out with US sites first. But then I tried...
Query 3 - "NY Pizza". Of course "NY Pizza" is more of a pizza style then a locality, but the 7-pack appeared at the top with the organic results listed below just as in the past with the expected title "Places for pizza near New York, NY".
Queries for "Miami Pizza" and "Los Angeles Pizza" showed the new Place Search results.
Based on this limited testing, it appears the change has been rolled out in the U.S. but there are probably a few tweaks necessary.
Has local and general search algorithms merged
The idea behind the change clearly seems to offer local search priority in results. As the article shared, Google stated that the old results were still present but in the author's testing it seems the old results were replaced by the Places result and that would indicate a form of merger.
-
Yes, i should have done that.
Here's the link - http://searchengineland.com/new-place-search-shows-googles-commitment-to-local-53990
-
Whenever making a "according to..." statement, it would be helpful to offer a link to the information so we can all read and better understand the context of the statement. Can you please offer a link?
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
How can I improve my search results for local pages?
My test for this specific example is http://www.mylocalgaragerepair.com This client is trying to reach out for the local terms such as garage door repair for Temecula and other cities in riverside county. I build the following page. http://www.mylocalgaragerepair.com/temecula-garage-door-repair-temecula-garage-door-service/ What am I doing wrong? Is there some plugin's or other type things that would help my rank locally? If you solve this you've solved one of the main problems I'm having with my business. Any help is greatly appreciated.
Image & Video Optimization | | Smallbusinessdoctor0 -
Multiple Store locations Google Local
Hey there, Is it best to create an individual page for each store location? Or is it best to create one page and plot different locations? Thanks, Dan
Image & Video Optimization | | Sparkstone0 -
What impact will Google removing 3rd party citations from listings have on citations being ranking factors?
So now that Google are going to remove 3rd party citations from listings, will they still carry the same weight for local rankings or will this be reduced? If so, how much and when?
Image & Video Optimization | | SteveOllington0 -
Google Shopping in SERPS - What % of clicks do they get?
Howdy, Looking for any data we can get on the % of click through the shopping results are getting in Google SERPs. There are tons of variables: how many products & which position the shopping feeds and images are shown in but any hard data would be helpful. The background is that we have a client who ranks #1 in Google for a shopping related term and their organic traffic is down in 2011 for this main keyword which has ranked #1 all year since the shopping feeds are continually showing above or below the 1st Google position vs sporadic or no display in years prior. I.e. They aren't happy the traffic is down & we are looking for some data we can provide them with beyond, "Google shopping is now eating part of your organic traffic for that term". Many thanks in advance!!
Image & Video Optimization | | WebpageFX0 -
Name Change in Google Places
In the middle of a nightmare in Google Places. Dealing with a number of Chiropractic franchises. They all had previous practices (and Places listings). In many cases, a duplicate listing was created. Some locations are "under review", others have lost their ranking and a few are ranking for both location in the 7 pack.(usually because they had a different phone number used so I assume Google sees it as a separate company despite the same location) I am trying to fix all these duplicate or near duplicate listings that were created previously. In one case I edited the existing listing and tried to verify by phone. I got the 5 digit code but Google then said code is not valid. Has anyone been through a similar situation? Should I delete/deactivate old listing and Then optimize the remaining or vice versa? A complete mess. In some cases they may have four listings...old company, new franchise and new name, Doctors names. Any insight appreciated.
Image & Video Optimization | | AgileInt0 -
Local EZE Reviews?
Is anyone here a channel partner with Localeze or has subscribed? Any thoughts? http://localeze.com They want a yearly fee and to me this doesn't make sense as all it is doing is sending information to the local listing sites and this should be a one-time deal.
Image & Video Optimization | | qlkasdjfw0 -
Will linking to my citation sources help google recognize them / credit my places account?
Or will those sources be discounted by google then similar to how google discounts link exchanges? I have noticed some pages, like mapquest, don't really have a directory, so google might not be aware of their content unless it is linked too??? In this type of a case, would it help to link to mapquest's search results? then the citation will get picked up by google? Example: http://www.mapquest.com/?hk=6-i30tP49i
Image & Video Optimization | | adriandg0 -
Google places - multiple clients
Is there any issue with adding multiple clients websites/locations to our Google Places account?
Image & Video Optimization | | cottamg0